Terror threats and New Year’s celebrations: A Christian response
Just a week ago, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard issued a stark warning about a profound threat facing the U.S. and the world: Islamist ideology. Now, as New Year’s Eve approaches, cities everywhere are bracing for impact.
In the U.S., iconic hubs like New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles are on high alert, weighing whether to move forward with massive celebrations amid fears of terrorist strikes. No concrete threats have surfaced yet, but Chicago officials have flagged crowded spots such as the fireworks display at Navy Pier as “attractive targets” for ill-willed actors. As of now, the city is pushing forward with the event, while ensuring ramped-up security measures are in effect.
In the Big Apple, Times Square prepares to host millions eager to ring in the new year under the glittering ball drop. Yet authorities remain vigilant, noting that not only Times Square but the entire city remains an “aspirational target” for terrorists — ranging from organized groups to unpredictable “lone wolf” attackers.
The released NYC threat assessment detailed how “lone offenders remain a particular concern due to their frequent ability to avoid detection until operational — al-Qaida and ISIS, and their supporters, continue to demonstrate an interest in targeting special events in the Homeland, as well as US officials and other perceived enemies.” And yet, despite concerns, Rudy Giuliani, the former NYC mayor who served during the 9/11 attacks, encouraged folks planning to celebrate the new year in NYC to continue as planned: “If it were me in New York, I would go ahead, but that’s because I know I have the greatest police department in the world.”
Although, while neither NYC nor Chicago outlined specific security threats, Los Angeles tells a more immediate tale. In recent weeks, authorities have already thwarted “a series of planned New Year’s attacks by the anti-government extremist group Turtle Island Liberation Front,” The Daily Wire reported. These foiled plots involved bomb threats, primarily aimed at Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
Beyond bombs, officials across the board are most worried about “vehicle ramming attacks” — a tactic already seen in waves across Europe and the U.S. In response, Christmas markets throughout Europe have significantly increased security, while Paris has outright canceled its iconic New Year’s Eve festivities on the Champs-Élysées.
These actions, from canceling events to sending out words of warning, point to a disheartening reality: The clock is ticking toward midnight, and the world is watching warily. It’s an era of heightened vigilance where people are trying to balance joy with caution. There’s something inherently human of looking forward to a fresh start — and especially feeling joy and excitement around gathering with loved ones to celebrate the one day every year where that fresh start feels most prominent. So, how do we balance the fun of the season with the fear of the unknown threats looming around us?
The Bible offers us a clear solution: to fear Him above all. Time and again, Scripture outlines how a proper fear of God overrides all others lesser fears. After all, 1 John 4:18 tells us “there is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.” God Himself is love — perfect love — and He is able to cast out what ails us.
In Acts chapter 9, we read of the conversion of a man who is now heavily referred to as the Apostle Paul. And yet, prior to his conversion, Paul was a persecutor and a murderer. He was determined to snuff out the people of God, and in many ways, he possessed the power and authority to do so. Reasonably, people were afraid of him. But God, in His sovereignty, did not permit Paul to destroy His church — just as He vowed not even the gates of Hell could prevail against it. However, even after the Lord confronted Paul and ultimately converted Him, many were still afraid of the man they knew to be a killer. This is where verse 31 comes into play: “So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.”
By walking in the fear of the Lord and the comfort of the Holy Spirit, the Church prevailed.
And then later, Paul, the same man who once stood as one of the greatest threats to the church, is also the man who provided us with (in my opinion) one of the most comforting passages in Scripture found in Romans 8:
“If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? … [W]e are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Whether we’re reading Paul’s letters, Jesus’s own words in the gospel accounts, or reflecting on the faithfulness of God throughout the Old Testament, one truth pierces every fear, doubt, and anxious thought: We will never be forsaken. We will never be overcome because we serve the God who overcame sin and death itself. No wars, no diseases, and no terror threats could ever thwart God’s will. And if you are a part of His Kingdom, then part of His will is to protect you — your heart and mind — from all alarms that seek to destroy you. “So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16).
So, in a time of fear and uncertainty, fix your eyes upon the one who casts out all fear and has control over all the world’s affairs. Jesus Himself reminds us in John 16:33, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
Originally published at The Washington Stand.
Sarah Holliday serves as a reporter for The Washington Stand. She earned her undergrad from Boise State University in Creative Writing and Narrative Arts, as well as a Certificate in Arts and Theology from Reformation Bible College.
